Foleshill Baptist Churchhttp://www.foleshill.org.uk
A Church For EveryoneMon, 27 Jul 2015 13:33:44 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=4.2.3Holidayshttp://www.foleshill.org.uk/holidays/
http://www.foleshill.org.uk/holidays/#commentsSat, 18 Jul 2015 12:44:56 +0000http://www.foleshill.org.uk/?p=1319Have you been on holiday this year yet? Are you planning on taking a holiday this year? The children will soon be on holiday from school, a rest for them and for the teachers!

What type of holiday do you like, lazing around at home or travelling to a different place – the UK or abroad? For some it is going home to visit family, others go off and relax by themselves.

Holidays take preparation, deciding where we want to go and increasingly today working out whether we can afford it or not. If we’re going abroad do we need any vaccinations or health information, are our passports out of date – do we have time to renew them? It’s all preparation!

Packing the cases, loading the car or taxi, getting the bus or train, being on time for the flight etc, it all takes preparation! We are all different, some of us start preparing months before, others rush through in a few days or hours – but we all have to prepare!

There is one event that we all have to prepare for, it comes along sooner or later, it’s far more important than any holiday. It is something that will happen to each one of us – that is that we will meet God! The Bible says, “Prepare to meet your God”.

It’s not a threat, it is just a fact that sooner or later every human will meet with God. We will be judged in regard to our relationship with Jesus Christ. If we have asked Him to be our Saviour and have shown the reality of that by living like Him then we are prepared.

The problem is for those who have never received Christ as Saviour, the result of judgement is separation from the love and presence of God. It doesn’t have to be like that – that’s why God tells us to prepare.

Simply pray a prayer like the one below and follow Christ for the rest of your life. Dear Lord Jesus, I am sorry for the wrong things that I have done, I am sorry for the pain that I have caused you. I turn from my sin and ask you to come into my life ; to forgive me and make me new. Fill me with your Spirit to help me live for you each day. Amen.

]]>http://www.foleshill.org.uk/holidays/feed/0What’s going on?http://www.foleshill.org.uk/whats-going-on/
http://www.foleshill.org.uk/whats-going-on/#commentsWed, 08 Jul 2015 17:05:40 +0000http://www.foleshill.org.uk/?p=1313One thing that you can always be sure about is the uncertainty about the weather in the UK. We wake up and it is one climate and then we can experience several other weather types during the day. Last Wednesday was the hottest on record, today it is windy, showery and occasionally sunny.

I don’t know if you were planning on doing anything summery outside today, you would have needed to take a jumper and an umbrella if you were! Sometimes it is best just to get on with what you were going to do, perhaps adapt it a bit! Gardening can be done in the rain or in the sun, it’s just a case of dressing for the weather. The book of Ecclesiastes says: “He who observes the wind will not sow, And he who regards the clouds will not reap” (11:4).

In the same way if we always wait for the right time or conditions we can miss out. If we are waiting till we are good enough to get to know Jesus, we will be waiting a long, long time. If we wait till we are feeling brave enough to share our faith with someone then so often we never do.

We shouldn’t wait until we know what’s going on, we should just get on and do what God has told us to do!

]]>http://www.foleshill.org.uk/whats-going-on/feed/0Hunger for Justicehttp://www.foleshill.org.uk/hunger-for-justice/
http://www.foleshill.org.uk/hunger-for-justice/#commentsWed, 22 Oct 2014 13:25:10 +0000http://www.foleshill.org.uk/?p=1264Last weekend as a church we focused on the way in which our lifestyles can affect others. See Christian Aid’s ‘Hunger for Justice’ campaign. #hungerforjustice
]]>http://www.foleshill.org.uk/hunger-for-justice/feed/0So what’s going to be new in 2014?http://www.foleshill.org.uk/so-whats-going-to-be-new-in-2014/
http://www.foleshill.org.uk/so-whats-going-to-be-new-in-2014/#commentsSat, 04 Jan 2014 17:05:27 +0000http://www.foleshill.org.uk/?p=1158At the beginning of a new year it is always a time for reflection on the past and anticipation of the new. What does this new year hold, what opportunities, what problems, what joys and what sorrows?

The problem that I find with something new is that I often don’t want to use it and risk damaging it – a new watch looks good in the box, but when I take it out and wear it I usually scratch the glass. A new shirt looks good until I spill something on it that stains it.

Do you see what I’m saying, my new diary and calendar, look good, they are new, but somehow I will spoil them. No matter how hard I try to write nicely I end up scrawling marks that look like an ant hip hopped across the page! It’s the same with life – I don’t live up to my own expectations, I’m not as organised or disciplined as I want to be.

That’s the problem, I know what I want to be like and I know what I want 2014 to be like, but somehow I will spoil the mental image that I have of it. I think that it just means that I will have to hold onto Jesus a lot tighter this year and really listen to what He is saying!

I wonder if you remember singing that when you were young, or are you too young to remember it? Christmas is about remembering a Saviour who was born in poverty and obscurity, we need to beware of turning it into a time of indulgence and over spending!

It would be good if while we are celebrating we remember those who have much less by giving. I’m not saying not to enjoy time with friends and families, but perhaps it would be good to also spend some time with the lonely, the hurting, those who are marginalised because of finance or background, basically with those who are less fortunate than ourselves.

We need to remember that the reason Jesus came was to take our place and punishment, He came to die for us. We find new life and forgiveness in receiving Him as Saviour, but part of the deal is that we live for Him. In living for Him we forget ourselves and serve others, we find joy in doing the things that Jesus did.

It is good to celebrate Christ’s birthday, but let us never forget why He came!

Christmas is coming but who is getting fat?

]]>http://www.foleshill.org.uk/christmas-is-coming-but-whos-getting-fat/feed/0Water, water everywhere!http://www.foleshill.org.uk/water-water-everywhere/
http://www.foleshill.org.uk/water-water-everywhere/#commentsWed, 31 Jul 2013 22:55:08 +0000http://www.foleshill.org.uk/?p=1032I woke up this morning with the sound of rain coming through our open bedroom window, and thought ‘Oh no! Sport in the Park is supposed to start today. It was about half an hour later that I was sitting in my study when I heard the sound of water dripping and discovered that our shower was leaking, and thought Oh no!

The day looked like being a literal washout but as a church we held some of the sports in Edgwick Park and people came. It was great to see people running around enjoying themselves despite the rain, it was great to see those taking part in archery, through the rain. People just got on with it, and ended up enjoying themselves.

Perhaps too often we let problems stop us enjoying ourselves, we see the difficulties when God wants us to see Him as the One who is offering us an opportunity. Ecclesiastes 11:4 in the Good News Translation reads, “If you wait until the wind and the weather are just right, you will never plant anything and never harvest anything.”

There are so many opportunities open to us each day so don’t waste your time thinking about the reasons why something might not work, get stuck in and see what God will do for and through you!

(If you are wondering what happened about the shower, we just patched up the seal and will get it fixed – no real harm was done!)

]]>http://www.foleshill.org.uk/water-water-everywhere/feed/0Who are we following?http://www.foleshill.org.uk/who-are-we-following/
http://www.foleshill.org.uk/who-are-we-following/#commentsFri, 12 Jul 2013 21:39:29 +0000http://www.foleshill.org.uk/?p=951I was reading 1 Corinthians 15 yesterday and was challenged by verses 45 -49 in particular. Paul speaks about two men – the man of dust and the heavenly man. He says that we all bear the image of the man of dust – the first Adam, we are like him in so many ways, particularly our tendency to ignore what God says to us. We go our own way and end up in trouble, we discover that disobedience to God leads to separation from God. We all have a longing for completeness and wholeness, but so often we can feel alienated, lonely and surrounded by angst! We can be surrounded by people, family, friends, neighbours, etc, but still ache for meaning and purpose in our lives.

Paul also speaks about the heavenly man – the second Adam, Jesus! WE can bear His image, we can be like Him. Jesus is God in the flesh, He died to take the punishment for our sins which separate us from God. It is through Him we discover that we can be forgiven and that we can discover God’s purpose for our life. We already bear the image of the man of dust by being part of humanity, we can chose to bear the image of the heavenly man by inviting Him into our lives to forgive our sins and to save us.
It is our choice which of the two we ultimately look like, we/I need to choose well!